Bee~ Journal of then...

[Beekissed]

Well, have found why my taters and maters have fiddle head ferns growing out their tops.....calcium deficiency...I think! Too much of that rich manure to the garden this spring.

Fortunately, I have lime! Have added it and also dusted the taters with it to kill tater bugs. We'll have to see how that turns out.

Making friends with the black and white community....Hitch and The Bettys are learning who dishes out the food around here! The Bettys are shedding their wool and look like dirty old shag carpeting..... Of course, Ugly Betty looks the worst. I am going to catch her this weekend and give her a bath and a good grooming. I know that is not a natural way to shed, but she looks uncomfortable and I know that its itchy when animals shed hair.

And....of course....I can't stand seeing something so ugly on my property. I guess I do have a girly gene in there somewhere....... :bun

Someone offered me some young roos and broilers for free....when folks find out you really will kill a chicken they want to give you the ones they cannot bear to kill. God Bless all the weak-kneed folks out there!

I guess it got out that the cow is going up for sale....I've had several folks asking about her and giving me names of folks who want a milk cow. I may not even have to advertise her, who knows? Of course, Aly gets first dibs but she said that if I got a better offer I should definitely take it.......we'll have to see how it all turns out. I go and check on her tomorrow. She is supposed to be up there for a month or more, so she won't be sold until she is bred anyway.

My sis is finally seeing the light....a tiny, sliver-like glimmer is shining through that dim landscape. She is starting to realize that her farming practices are a little pricey and not so effective. Praise God! I don't expect she will correct a lifetime of what she calls thinking with that hard head of hers, but a seed has been planted and seems to be trying to grow.

I think it started when she saw Blossom's progress after using no meds, expensive feed additives, chemical de-wormers or vaccines. She is still amazed. Then she met another guy who is a Salatin fan and she kind of got the idea that I'm not so dumb after all. She has always called Joel "preachy" and pooh-poohed his methods.

She called me tonight and asked where I ordered my Shaklees Basic H soap!

OH! Maybe THAT is why Blossom came for her visit in my life........ God certainly works in mysterious ways.

 

[TanksHill]

Hey Bee I have a few chickens...... there kinda old but you can have them if you like.

I need to man up and cull the darn things. I don't think they lay any more. For a while I was getting yolkless eggs. Nothing like free loaders.

 

[Farmfresh]

Boy are you right TANK! Those freeloaders make the BEST chicken soup! ... And chicken noodles, and chicken dumplins' ...

I love to take old worn out layers and pressure can them. That way a good chicken meal is only about 30 minutes away. Old hens have the absolute MOST flavor and mine are always so fat the broth is just gold! A few good dinners in my mind always makes me brave!

You are right Bee. God DOES work his mysteries! Sometimes people can only learn by seeing. Hopefully your sister will be open to some changes, but just don't rush her at all.
I am excited for this new "ministry" of yours!

I agree also with the "I can't stand seeing something so ugly on my property. I guess I do have a girly gene in there somewhere....... ". Things like that bother me too.

Speaking of "girly gene" as you all know I love to fish. Well last week when I was fishing I was using crawdads for bait. I am not really afraid of them, but they do creep me out - especially when they flip their tails! So anyway I was baiting my hook and this crawdad I had just caught flips it's tail at me so I squeeled. (Yes I actually squeeled. )

My hubby turns around and says, "For goodness sakes - quit acting like a girl!"

So then I start thinking ... "Well what am I then - chop liver!"

I guess this self sufficiency thing does sometimes have adverse effects!

 

[Farmfresh]

Bee do you think the lime would also work on squash beetles?

 

[FarmerChick]

Bee, I am posting this on your thread because I know it will get more looks than if I posted it on my SS journal (Im a hijackaaa) But I took a nice little vacation for a few days. My parents got back from the lovely West Virginia on Sunday and on Monday I invited a friend over. We thought it would be a good idea to jump on the trampoline in the pouring rain with the hose on it. I decided to impress my friend with a long consistent backflip thing. Which is jumping backflip, without braak doing another backflip and so on and on. Well, seeing how it was wet, on my third one i slipped when I left the ground and wa still doing a backflip. I landed right on my neck. INstant neck pain and I couldn't move my legs. I wasn't paralyzed, I was just so scared I couldn't feel them, it only lasted a couple seconds. So we went to the ER and they gave me 2 x-rays and a CAT scan. They still couldn't find if it was muscular or if it was ripped/stretched/torn ligaments (which could paralyze me if not healed) The doctors said that the torn ligaments is rare but there is still a small chance, so Im getting some more x-rays today. I'm very scared. And I am also wearing a stylish neck brace...

I am so glad you are going to be fine...that is super duper scary big time Ticks....WOW

BUT also it is being a young person and experimenting....life is definitely not a guarantee for anything. From crazy dumb stunts to just walking down the porch steps, anything can happen to us at any given time. BUT YOU LEARNED. Yea we are not immortal like we think when younger.

I look back on the dumb things and glad I survived, would I do them again, heck no, cause I learned...HA HA HA....you have alot of life to experience, be safe while doing it!

So chalk this up to lucky for you!!! so far, and chalk it up to experience and all that. take care of yourself!!!! hunting season is coming and you want to be able to enjoy your sport without injuries!!

 

[shareneh]

TICKS! via Beekissed;

I never bought my kids the trampolines or four wheelers and what happened to you was my reason.

I always told them, I will buy your Trampoline if you give me $17,000 for the broken neck you are gonna get. That's the amount i figured insurance wouldn't pay.

Hope you get better. Not trying to be condecending.

 

[Beekissed]

Bee do you think the lime would also work on squash beetles?

Farm, I love your new avatar! Are they yours?

I think the lime will work for squash beetles while its on the surface of the plant or on the ground around the stem.....but as soon as it rains, that is done. And, unlike other things you would use as a repellant, you can't keep adding the lime or you create an imbalance in your soil pH. Since I needed the lime anyway I kind of got a dual purpose benefit. Even around my pumpkins and other vines because their leaves were kind of curly also. I guess I got a little free handed with the rich manure this year!

So funny about your fishing story! I don't like to bait with crawdads either...something about their texture I don't like, sort of like using meal worms..... Its harder to pierce their exoskeletons and it has a horrible feel when it finally thunks through it and I can feel their pain.

 

[Farmfresh]

Meal worms ... yuck they are so gross I just can't do it!

Yes they are my peaches. Red Haven peaches from my little front yard dwarf a couple of years ago. This year we have very few (late frost) and the ones we have are all spotty (fungus). Last year we got about 60 pounds (+/-).

A few years before when the tree was just a baby I thought it was going to crack in half from all of the fruit!

It amazingly survived without damage and since then has gotten LOTS stronger!

I also have a fruit cocktail tree, which is a grafted tree with 4 different kinds of fruit on one tree. (all in the same family however) It has apricots, peaches, nectarines and plums on the same tree each branch grafted to a common trunk! I get fruit from it about every other year.
This year all the buds froze off. It has more apricots and nectarines than the other fruits. It is weird cause the leaves on different branches are different and they flower different times and different colors!
This pic is from 2004

 

[big brown horse]

Wow look at Farmfresh's peaches!!!! OMG!

A fruit cocktail tree? Incredible! I thought I was a hot shot with a grafted apple tree with 5 different apples, but different fruit??? HOW COOL IS THAT?

 

[Beekissed]

The trees are lovely! And the fruit looks so burgeoning and healthy! I must admit that my mouth started watering.....

I will be the first to admit that I do NOT have a green thumb, though I try mightily! I get lucky sometimes. But, mostly, I'm a distracted gardener. To be really good, you have to be in that garden every day, monitoring conditions.

I think, if I didn't have to work all the time, I would probably be a much better gardener.

I dream of a place where fruit of all kinds is hanging off the trees and vines, the flowers are huge and bright and the bees, butterflies and birds all cavort gaily. I think its called Heaven..... It certainly would be, for me!